How'd ya do this year?

[Needemp]

We are about to have our end of the year meeting next week and I figured most clubs were just about wrapped up. So how did ya do? Did you meet your goals? Did you do better this year than last? What went right and what went wrong?

Mine: This was my first year in any club or fishing any kind of tournament. It wasn't so bad for me, I guess. I sure wish I would have done better. We had 8 point tourneys. Basically I started out not knowing anybody and had to pair up with lesser experienced guys at first. But they were good guys. I caught the attention of some of the better fisherman in the club as a little time went by. I fished twice with last years AOY and twice with this years ROY, which he also finished 4th place in AOY. I also have been invited to fish next year with both of them and with this years 1st and 2nd place finishers in AOY.

Here are some of my stats that I am proud of (but surprised by):

4th most fish caught all year

6th overall total weight

6th biggest one day stringer caught

17th in AOY (and that is without fishing or having caught fish in half the tourneys)

One 1st place individual

One 2nd place individual

One 6th place individual

One 1st place as a team

Two 2nd place as a team

I won the club classic.

On top of that, I also won the MO Bass Resources tourney in April with 23.5lbs with an 8.3lb kicker.

I really learned a lot and can't wait till next year.

[bighed]

Sounds like you had a awsome year!   I'd take a 23lb sack any time.  For me it was a great year, exceeded most goals.  Won two club T's and looks like I'll have 6th place for AOY.  Held my own in my first year fishing MediaBass.com trail and cashed a check in a pretty tough tourny on Lake Fork.  Qualified for the championship but couldn't get loose to compete.  Fished the Jr. BASS NE Texas trail with my son and took him to the championship on Amistad where he got 6th place.  Away from the club and tournaments I took my son and his buddy fun fishing to Fork during the summer and got into the best bite I've ever had there.  The boys each caught a half dozen or more 3-8 pounders two days in a row.  I fished offshore at least 20 days this year and boated my biggest king ever at about 50 lbs.  Took my son on his first yellowfin tuna trip to Green Canyon off of the Louisiana coast where he landed three YF to 85 lbs.  Caught a 4lb rainbow trout my first trip to Tanycomo lake in Feb.  Met up with the BR crew for the Fork roadtrip for a couple days and met lots of nice folks.  Took my son to Rocky Mountain National Park where he caught brown, rainbow, and greenback cut throat on the fly.  Had a great (blessed) year.  big

[5bass]

This was a decent season in the Top Gun format club that I'm in. We have a 10 tournament season covering 4 different lakes and we use a point system to determine the overall winner adding up the points from your best 8 finishes and throwing out your two worst finishes. I only fished 6 tournaments and had come in 4th overall when the smoke cleared. Well, I fished 7 but took a DQ in one and got 0 points in that one. Otherwise, I had a 3rd (would've been 2nd but had a dead fish), a 6th, a 12th and to finish the season I had 3 straight wins.

In the team format club that I fish with a good buddy, we finished 3rd overall. Same points deal but we only fish 6 tournaments. We had one win, two seconds, a 5th, a 6th and an 8th.

It was a decent year and I'm looking forward to 2008.

[jaskoh]

I went to two club meetings and scored my 10 points!  ;D

[riverfisher]

Well for me this year Id have to say I did pretty well. This was my first year as a boater in tournaments. I had no intentions of being a boater this year I really just got into tournament fishing last year, it just happened. I went and looked at a boat before spring with a friend of mine. He was looking at Tritons and I ended up buying one a used 2002 Tr186 with a mercury 150 XR6. Alls I have to say is I love it. It runs excellent and its killen me seing it in my garage winterised and covered up. BUT tournament wise I feel I did great and accomplished more then I set out to do. Weekday buddy tournaments started off a little slow for me I was getting used to being the one in control and I was expecting that. I wasn't coming in with limits every week it never really got me down though I was just taking it as a first year learning experience. I did two single man tournaments the first one I came in 3rd out of 23 boats and the second one I came in 1st out of 32 boats those there had me on cloud nine. I was in contention with a bunch of local and very experienced fishermen and I did very well i wish I had done more. I fished a tournament out of state had no clue about the waters and neither did my partner. We checked out maps the night before looked for areas that we wanted to hit and never went off of what we planned to do, we figured the fish out erly and found a great pattern. Turned out to be another first place again cloud nine. Did a couple more buddy tournaments did pretty well Cant remember places I came in but I did get limits in everyone. I ended my season off in october it was an open going out of Southbay Champlain my partner had fished it often with his club for me it was another first. Well to make a long story short 4 hours into the tournament  we had 6 fish and it was an 8 fish limit so we were doing pretty well 6 fish scaled out at about 20 lbs not to shabby we were feelin pretty good. We pulled up to a spot of his that produced pretty well for him in the past dropped the trollin motor and proceded to fish. We were there no more then 15 min fishing with the wind and it had us moving pretty good next thing I knew there was a guy pulling up ahead uf us that was fishing the open!! No more then a cast away my blood just started to boil I was just about to start casting at him I was so PO'd but I didn't. I figured I would just start the motor and leap frog him that'll teach'em. Fire up the motor hit the throttle next thing I know Im getting spray in my face yep I forgot to put my trollin motor up!! d**n IT!!! Bent the shaft broke the pinion nut ended my season I almost puked dumped my fish and went home. But another lesson learned Never never never forget the trollin motor ;D. This year im thinking about joining a club as a non-boater maybe even do the weekend series and learn more big water hit a bunch of opens in my boat then just to be depressed all winter all over again. Well that was my first season and im out!

[fishfordollars]

Decent year. Largest stringer was 22.89 on the club level. Qualified for the state team. Missed a few due to my health but finished 5th over all in our club. Fished 8 out of 12 tournaments. Won a little money here and there, Next year we will be on Fork in May and October. Hopefully someone on here will give me some help.